Much like prime-time anchors on national television, there’s a new breed of ill-informed folks giving their opinions on Indian football.
When these individuals take a break from stanning European football – clubs which in no way care about their opinions, they turn their gaze to the local game. A pursuit which is so misguided and filled with half-baked opinions, that it is counter-productive to the game.
Akin to their counterparts on electronic media, their opinion has little foundation in fact and relies heavily on information being fed by one man and his band of keyboard friends.
The OCI/PIO may finally finish whatever development has tried to happen in this country vis-a-vis football in the last 10 years. Granted that is nowhere near enough, but the OCI/PIO debate has deeper pockets to fill.
Young gentlemen of the diaspora have come and gone, claiming to be Indian football’s saviours. However, the quality was so comically bad that they couldn’t even be registered for the I-League.
The hope from some quarters is that as hidden agents of these gents, a fat payday is possible. Given the already inflated state of wages for mediocre players waah-waahed after making a straight line pass, these saviours of Indian football are likely to command astronomical wages.
This summer saw the emergence of an outlay on a player which rivalled the budget of 3 I-League clubs. What’s next? Picking the next great 15 year old with 15 goals in the youth league and giving him the keys to the city of Hyderabad, I suppose.
Fans, the most insightful lot, maintain their innocence and great understanding of football throughout. This, their favourite transfer season, is in full swing and the lukewarm nature of activity has seen them bored to their eyelashes.
So obviously the next shiny object is the PIO/OCI debate. Any Indian playing in a European park is a valuable commodity. Two arms, two legs and can juggle? My god, give the guy a 14-year-contract already.
Amidst this, the usual suspects have managed to once again successfully make themselves the centre of attention. Not content with fielding bearded fathers in the Under-17 category, their brain waves have to gone to the next level, siding with the Choriz Pao mafia.
Overall, Indian football is at a nadir where all hell has broken loose. Results seem to be decided in the courts rather than on the pitch, and a slew of farcical decisions later, we are back in the 80s. Even so, the player kidnappers back then had an iota of loyalty to their side.
Finally, coming to the man at the centre of it all. Bumbling, confused, stumbling from one own goal to another. He has burst through his own net in spectacular fashion, many a time and has proven that given time, even the most run-down ecosystem can be run-down anymore.
Perhaps he is a Trojan Horse, sent by our rivals to once and for all, brutally squash any hopes that we may have. Along with the monkeys screaming at you from the reel section everyday, anything is possible.
The lowest low is no longer that – it is just a new low beyond which lies a deeper low.
DISCLAIMER:
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Away End or its affiliates.
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